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In contrast, in terms of how much time students spend actually going about some kind of learning activity, it is nearly always time out of class that makes most demands, and yet what that learning is intended to consist of, or what it is for, may receive least attention of all from their teachers. As they design a course, or as they think about how well it is going, teachers tend to look at some components but not others. Their course evaluation questionnaire may list all the classroom teaching sessions, and perhaps students’ attendance at them, but none of the things students were supposed to have done out of class, or how much effort they put in.

Without clear goals, it is argued, it is impossible to design a coherent course. But my experience is that nearly all courses nowadays have stated learning outcomes and they are still often incoherent in terms of the educational processes involved.

But I believe that you need a sense of what students are supposed to be doing, not just where they are heading. In an integrated course what students do, and what they are learning to do, are often the same thing.